Now that it is mid-November here in the Pacific Northwest we are starting to have some truly cold days. Last weekend we had a hard freeze so I knew that would be a good time to test this fire starter and tinder that Lightning Strike Fire Starter sent us as

My previous SAR-related post involved a subject who was very prepared for an unintended night alone in the wilderness. This one involves a subject that could have prepared a lot better. I answered a call to search for a missing mushroom picker in mid-October. She had gone missing the day

Lifestraw or some other water filters are great, and if you have one you should use it. But what if you don’t have one? I knew that you could make a water filter from some basic materials that you probably already have at hand like sand and a 2-liter soda

The intense 2017 wildfire and hurricane seasons in the United States and a series of deadly earthquakes in Mexico have many people wondering about their level of preparedness. They’re also wondering how to help their community prepare for and respond to a major disaster. Police officers, EMS staff and firefighters

We recently posted an article asking if your child would be found alive if they were stranded outside. That led to a question of what situations would be best to stay where you are and what situations would you be best served by leaving the area. In most cases, you’re

Did you know the CDC has stockpiled caches of nerve agent antidotes around the country? The CDC (Centers of Disease Control) states that if their nerve agent antidote is all in one place (like Washington, DC, for instance), that it would be too difficult to deploy the antidote in the

I’ve long known that you could eat acorns. I just didn’t know how. I knew that Native Americans relied on acorns as a food source and that they somehow had a way to turn them into flour for little cakes. I live in an area that has some oak trees,

We talk a lot on this site about gear, survival skills, and general preparedness. But that’s focused on adults. I’m lucky in that my 10-year-old son enjoys and wants to do “survival” type stuff. I trust him with a hatchet. He’s allowed to use some of my husband’s tools like